The newest illustration of how the Metropolis of Portland helps bike buses is a novel innovation that provides faculty experience leaders superpowers: At a number of places throughout town the place bike bus routes cross busy intersections, the Portland Bureau of Transportation has programmed visitors alerts with a customized, bike bus-friendly timing plan that’s activated by an extended push of the beg button.
We’ve heard of transit sign precedence to maneuver buses by visitors. You might consider this as bike bus sign precedence. I first heard about this from PBOT Director Millicent Williams when she spoke on the Bicycle Advisory Committee assembly final Tuesday. I then reached out to PBOT for clarification.
In response to PBOT Communications Director Hannah Schaffer, alerts engineers have re-programmed a number of visitors alerts with added inexperienced “Stroll” instances which are initiated by an extended push of the pedestrian “beg” button. When activated, the brand new “Stroll” alerts give a considerably longer interval of inexperienced crossing time than normal — in some instances over one minute (when mixed with a shorter, flashing “Don’t Stroll” sign), in comparison with simply 10-15 seconds for a typical “Stroll” sign. The prolonged stroll alerts can be found for under a brief window of time in the course of the morning bike bus commute.
Under are simply three examples Schafer was capable of share with BikePortland:
Location: SE Division at SE eightieth. Timeframe: 7:00 to eight:15 am. Push and maintain the pedestrian button crossing on SE Division to obtain an prolonged stroll as much as 45 seconds (plus one other 18 seconds flashing “Don’t Stroll”)
Location: SE Powell at 71st/72nd. Timeframe: 7:00 to eight:30 am. Push and maintain the pedestrian button crossing Powell to obtain an prolonged stroll as much as 45 seconds (plus 15 seconds flashing “Don’t Stroll”). This additionally prompts a pedestrian extension timer at 72nd and Powell crossing Powell, so these two intersections can keep pink for Powell and permit for the bike actions heading south to east to south.
Location: SE Holgate at 72nd. Timeframe: 7:15 to eight:30 am. We’ve put in a particular button on the NW nook that reveals a “bike” image on it. The pedestrian motion shall be served each cycle, as normal, however if you happen to push and maintain this button it should prolong the stroll as much as 55 seconds (plus 8 seconds flashing “Don’t Stroll”). We’ve additionally put in a pedestrian head begin [also known as a leading pedestrian interval, or LPI] at this location for the crossing of Holgate (delays car inexperienced for 4 seconds, on this case, and offers pedestrian actions a “head begin”).
Be mindful, these visitors alerts weren’t designed to accommodate such a use-case. What we have now here’s a authorities company empowering knowledgable employees to make use of current expertise to assist adopted coverage objectives and supply higher service for highway customers. Longer “Stroll” instances will enable bike buses to remain collectively and would possibly scale back the necessity for “corking” intersections — an typically demanding transfer the place a volunteer steps in entrance of opposing visitors to verify everybody will get by the intersection.
These novel new sign changes are only one method PBOT is supporting the expansion of motorbike buses, which now occur weekly at 20-25 faculties throughout Portland’s 5 faculty districts. In April BikePortland reported on $650,000 from numerous sources that has been earmarked for bike bus-related investments. This features a new wayfinding and signage program, intersection daylighting adjoining to highschool campuses (which is at present occurring at 9 faculties, with one other 9 to be accomplished by the tip of the college 12 months), modal filters, and different visitors calming tasks.
Yesterday PBOT launched a brand new survey looking for enter on the place and how one can spend that cash. The e-mail saying the survey was titled, “Greenways had been made for bike buses.” It’s an acknowledgment that, whereas the newest bike bus revolution is only some years previous, PBOT’s sturdy community of 122 miles of neighborhood greenways are the inspiration that makes it doable.
“As we proceed to have conversations about what we do to assist the bike bus motion,” PBOT Director Williams stated the BAC assembly final week, “a few of that can require some adjustments.” “There’s a deep curiosity in ensuring that we try this nicely and try this proper.”
